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Thursday, April 09, 2009

Random thoughts for a Thursday

I am now up to date with all past Belshaw World columns, so from this point I can post them on a Wednesday with a week's lag. This also gives me a chance now to catch up on other things such as my New England blog round-ups, as well as my reading of local newspapers. It's quite hard keeping in touch with developments across such a big area.

InDEPRESSING JIM BELSHAW, Lynne talks about the continuing experiences of partner Peter in dealing with Centrelink and the job network system. I actually caught the now deleted post because Neil picked it up in his Google reader series before Lynne deleted it.

Now the issue of dressing up for an interview is one thing. We all have to fit in to some degree - call it protective colour - with employer perceptions. However, the real core of Lynne's complaint was the apparent implication that if Peter did not comply with the wishes of his trainer he might lose the Newstart benefit.

This actually links to something I have written about quite extensively, the difficulty of designing systems (and especially Government systems) to take difference into account. We all know that a one size fits all approach does not work, yet we constantly replicate it because the difficulties involved in doing otherwise seem just to great.

There is a link here to the problems that I complained about in Belshaw’s World: Seven deadly sins of performance measurement. Peter is presently sitting within a measurement and compliance world surrounded by various performance measures and associated compliance rules and techniques all governed by budget constraints. There is little room in such a world for difference.

The New England of 2009 has become very fragmented. Elizabeth's book draws out both Inverell's unique features - this is the Inverell of the title - and the different pattern of geographic linkages that existed in the past.

2 comments:

Thank you again, Jim. I have so rarely touched this "straight" world in the last decade that the shock factor is still with me and your clarity on some of the issues is helping me considerably. Moreover, I enjoy the New England Adventuring. Next - the BIG RIVER. Yrs Lynne.

Keep Belshaw writing!

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About this blog

This blog is dedicated to the history, life and culture of Australia's New England, that part of Australia stretching from the Hunter Valley through to the Queensland border and incorporating the Hunter Valley, the Mid North Coast, the Northern Rivers, the New England Tablelands, Slopes and Western Plains.

While New England has still to achieve formal political identity, it has its own character and identity and is, in the words of the Australian poet A D Hope, an ideal in the heart and mind.